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Crew members, maintenance technicians and flight dispatchers all have mandatory rest periods between duty shifts. The dispatchers and schedulers in the operations control center must take that into account when reassigning crews or planning routine maintenance. It requires experience, coordination, and attention to detail to get the right crew, at the right airplane, at the right gate. For the flight crews, this can be especially frustrating, sometimes turning a planned two-day trip into a four or five-day odyssey. Adding stress is sorting out the rerouting of all the passengers affected. Frustration is an unfortunate part of the process.
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Why do delays happen when airlines know of incoming major weather events?
Airlines do what they can to get passengers and cargo to their destination as close to schedule as possible. Sometimes it can be days before that can be accomplished. For the airline, it is still not over, as they must return to normal scheduled operations but realize that some scheduled pilots and flight attendants will not be available due to the rerouting they experienced during irregular operations.
Weather events at major airports can cause delays and cancellations across the country and internationally. Due to the number of airplanes that fly through large major airports the ripple effect can cause delays at many secondary airports, sometimes for days.
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As we head into winter season, it’s important to remember that hundreds of experienced professionals are working to solve the many issues. If you learn of a possible storm affecting your flight or receive an email with a modified itinerary, realize that those decisions were not made lightly and are probably one of your best options. One last consideration is that the phone reservation lines quickly get clogged. Try email or the chat feature on the airlines’ websites, they may get you faster answers.
No one likes having travel plans disrupted. After watching the airlines cope with various storms over many decades, it makes me appreciate the professionals in the operations control centers around the country for keeping us flying.